Pearls from the Divine

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EVERYDAY before you begin work, pray to God for a few minutes at least; and, at the end of the day, when the work is over, gather in some consecrated spot, a temple or mandir and offer grateful thanks to the Lord, singing His name and meditating on His Majesty. That will make you real Karma Yogins, even heroes of the Karma Path. YOU must speak soft and sweet words to everyone. Do you like the voice of the crow? No, you drive the crow away when it starts to caw; its speech is harsh, it is too loud for your ears. You must have heard the Koel, the cuckoo, haven't you? That bird looks very much like the crow; it grows in the nest of the crow with the baby crows; it is fed by the mother crow, along with her own kids. But no one will throw a stone at a "Koel"; every one likes to hear its sweet voice. Speak soft and sweet; then every one will like you. LISTEN to Me. When you wake up, feel that you are entering the

stage to play the role assigned to you by the Lord; pray that you may act it well and earn His probation. At night, when you retire to sleep, feel that you are entering the green-room after the scene, but with the dress of your role on; for perhaps the role is not yet over and you have not yet been permitted to take the dress off. Perhaps, you have to make another entrance the next morning. Do not worry about that. Place yourself fully at His Disposal; He knows; He has written the play and He knows how it will end and how it will go on; Yours is but to act and retire. THE tongue is the armour of heart; it guards one's life. Loud talk, long talk, wild talk, and talk full of anger and hate; all these affect the health of man. They breed anger and hate in others; they wound; they excite; they enrage; they estrange. Why is silence said to be golden? The silent man has no enemies, though he may not have friends. He has the leisure and the chance to

delve within himself and examine his own faults and failings. He has no more inclination to seek them (fault) in others. If your foot slips, you sustain a fracture; if your tongue slips, you fracture some one's faith or joy. That fracture can never be set right; that wound will fester for ever. Therefore, use the tongue with great care. The softer you talk, the less you talk and the sweeter you talk, the better for you and the World. IF God is implanted in the heart, you will see God everywhere, even in the objective World. "Sarvam Brahmamayam" is a fact. Resolve this day to engage only in virtuous deeds, good thoughts, and good company. Let your mind dwell on elevating thoughts. Do not waste a single moment of your time talking in idle gossip, vain boasting or demeaning recreations. The company of good persons shall promote good thoughts. It is good thoughts that help us to strengthen our will power, which is the basis

of acquiring other qualities, that is, discrimination, determination, intelligence, and enquiry, but this will power becomes weak due to limitless desires. It is a great pity that the mind of man is making him sacrifice the good things in life like the love of God, fear of sin and social morality. There is no benefit accrues without adherence to proper discipline. Everything should be within certain limits. Our body is the best example for this. If the body temperature crosses the limit of 98.4 degrees Fahrenheit, fever sets in. 120/80 is the perfect blood pressure, crossing which the body will be subjected to ill-health. Even the eyes can see light only up to a particular level of intensity. The retina of the eye will get burnt if you try to see excessive light. Thus, God has set certain limits to everything in His creation. So, man should keep a check over his desires. Otherwise, he will be put to danger. Only when man leads a regulated life,

can he enjoy health and happiness. When you see the world with the eye of divine bliss, you will find bliss everywhere. If there is hatred in your vision, you will see hatred everywhere. Hence, change your vision to start with. Look at the world with the vision of peace, love, and compassion. Then the whole world will appear loving and peaceful. When your heart is filled with love, you will experience the Divine in the entire cosmos. See the Divine in everyone. Eschew hatred and ill will. After years of devotion, many still lack a broad outlook and an all-encompassing love. Embodiments of love! Promote love in your hearts incessantly love that is immortal and infinite. You are only actors on the stage before the footlights. The Director, who knows the Play, who assigns the roles, who gives the cues, who calls you in and puts you on is behind the curtain. You are a puppet; He holds the strings. If He must be seen, you have

to be His 'Sakhaa' (friend) or 'Bandhu' (kinsman). Merely being an onlooker will not entitle you to approach Him and be in His Holy Company. Cultivate His Friendship or Kinship by the attitude of Love and dedicated Service. WHEN you call out in all sincerity, the response will certainly come. Give up all low desires and call from the anguished heart. Do not pray from the lips, as you do now, from the puja room which is but a corner of the kitchen. You worship the Lord with an eye on the dishes or cooking on the oven, with a nose inhaling hungrily the smells of the hot curries. Your thoughts of God are vitiated by "Vishavasana", attachment to sensory objects. There is a vast gap between what you say and what you do; and between what you are capable of and what you accomplish. - Taken from Various Discourses of Swami

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